1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to packaging systems for food products such as meal kits. In particular, the invention relates to a packaging system which, when opened, provides multiple food preparation modules.
2. Description of the Related Art
Meal kits, pre-packaged and ready for immediate serving, heating or cooling, have increased in popularity. Generally, meal kits contain a variety of ready-to-eat food items chosen to provide an essentially complete meal. The various food items may comprise a complete food serving, a side dish, condiments or spices provided either in a separate form or in sauces or dips. The food servings may include meat, meat products, cheese, beverage and dessert items.
In the prior art, arrangements have been provided for assembling a variety of different items in a pre-arranged kit form. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,167,181 provides for the packaging of various dealer-aid advertising newspaper mats on a common backer member folded to resemble a portfolio. Double-faced tape is used to secure the mats to the backer. U.S. Pat. No. 3,323,643 discloses packages for first-aid and survival kits in which individual articles are arranged in a container according to a pre-determined pattern. Several items are disposed on the lid flaps of the package and are secured thereto with pressure-sensitive adhesive. U.S. Pat. No. 3,389,784 provides a sheet of backing material to which a plurality of different survival kit items are secured, using adhesive. The sheet is folded and stored in an outer container. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,294,352 a variety of emergency kit items are disposed in a metalized foil pouch. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,702,378 a sanitary disposable baby change kit is provided. Elements of the kit are secured to a plastic backer which is folded into the form of a pouch for ready transport.
The above-mentioned arrangements are generally unsuitable for use with meal kit packaging systems. For example, a need arises in packaging meal kits for separating relatively heavy items from food items which are fragile. Further, the above arrangements do not provide self-supporting container means needed to preserve the food quality and attractiveness unique to meal kit systems. While various paperboard cartons have been made available, such s those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,240,419; 3,310,222; 4,083,455 and Reissue Patent No. Re. 26,471, the need remains for a commercially effective packaging systems especially adapted to the requirements of meal kit systems.
Depending on the food products involved and the taste of the consumer, the same food items of a meal kit may be served at different temperatures. In addition, consumers may prefer to serve several different food items of a meal kit at different temperatures. Accordingly, the need has arisen for packaging systems to accommodate these various consumer preferences. For example, some of the meal kits offered by a provider, such as a vegetable salad, may lend themselves to a cold serving, while a hot serving is preferred for other types of meal kits, such as pizza. As a further challenge to providers of meal kits, one individual may prefer to consume a food item, such as a meat sandwich, at a lower temperature, while another individual may prefer to consume the same food item at a heated temperature. It is desirable that a meal kit packaging system be suitable for both heading and cooling, according to individual consumer tastes.
Typically the food items of many meal kits display a wide variety of texture and softness, as well as varying susceptibility to crushing. For a variety of reasons it is desirable to provide the food items (i.e., the various components of a meal kit system) in separate, independent packages. Food items may be individually pre-packaged in a variety of different ways, including containers having removable lids, pouches, film wrap, plastic bags and small paperboard containers. Due to shipping constraints placed on commercially competitive meal kits, packaging systems for individual food items cannot provide optimal crush resistance. For example, potato chips and other low density chip products are packaged in a foil bag, being rendered susceptible to crumbling into smaller pieces under applied pressure from a heavier component of the meal kit, such as a beverage container. Other products are also susceptible to applied pressure. For example, bread sticks and pizza dough may be deformed by a heavy item placed on it. It is desirable to arrange the various food items of a meal kit so as to separate heavy and crushable items during shipping and handling and to prevent crushing and the like pressure-related damage to the food items so as to preserve the desired visual presentation of the meal kit when opened by a consumer.
Care must therefore be exercised in arranging the food items in the container during transport and handling to prevent unfavorable and unintended consequences. One problem that has arisen is that of adequately constraining food items included in the meal kit which may be heavier or more dense than the other food items. If the heavy food items are not adequately contained in a generally stable position, they may crush food items in the package and may re-arrange the contents of the package in an undesirable manner. For example, it is desirable to isolate a beverage container, when provided, from the other items in the meal kit package. At times, this may be difficult or impossible because of the relative size of the beverage container with respect to the size of the other items, and to the overall internal volume within the meal kit package. For example, certain popular food items such as pizza crusts, bread sticks and nacho chips frequently have a size as large as the major dimensions of the packaging system itself.
It is generally desirable to limit the size (and especially the ratio of package material to product weight or volume) of a commercial package, particularly packages which are sold in great numbers. As mentioned, meal kit packaging systems are becoming increasingly popular and a significant number of products units are required to meet market demand. Accordingly, attention has been paid to the overall density of meal kit packaging systems and ways for reducing void space within such systems are continually being sought. As mentioned, it is desirable to isolate heavy items from items which are crushable and deformable, an objective which is at odds with reduction of package void space. A need still remains to develop an optimized meal kit packaging system which strikes an optimal balance between competing considerations, such as those mentioned above.
Meal kits may take on various levels of complexity, depending upon the nature of the food items included. For example, a pizza meal kit may require a pizza crust to be loaded with a variety of optional toppings and then covered in a sauce. Typically, the pizza, with its toppings and sauce, must be heated in some manner, before serving. Beverages and side dishes provided in the same meal kit may be best served when chilled. Accordingly, when opening the meal kit package, food items contained in the package must be separated into two or more groups, one to be maintained in a chilled condition and the other to be heated before serving. It is desirable to provide multiple packaging components for use by a consumer in organizing the meal kit for preparation and serving.
Portability is an attractive feature of meal kits, allowing the meals to be consumed at a place in which table and chairs may not be provided. For example, a consumer may wish to enjoy a meal kit in a park setting on a bench or on an improvised seat, for example. It is important that the meal kits be self supporting when opened and remain self-supporting so as to allow a consumer to concentrate on the meal presented, rather than on preserving the integrity of a flexible package. It is further desirable that the package be separable into individual package parts to allow the consumer an ability to organize the food items as desired.
Some meal kits have become more sophisticated, requiring a number of ordered steps to be taken to prepare the meal. At the same time, considerable effort has been expended to make the advantages of meal kits available to children and young adults. It is possible to present the food items of a meal kit in such a way as to suggest the order of their assembly and use, and such is an object of the present invention. Such suggestion can be especially helpful for children and young adults in helping them to learn meal presentation skills. It is generally preferred that useful suggestions be provided in some manner other than an instruction sheet, such as by giving the consumer visual cues from the ordered arrangement of the food items within the meal kit package.
These and other objects of the present invention are provided in a meal kit packaging system for ready-to-eat food and beverage items, comprising:
a container having first and second parts joined together by a hinge;
at least one line of separation dividing the container into said first and said second parts, with one container part to be hingedly movable toward and away from the other container part so as to render the container reclosable;
the first and second parts of the container each having a support wall at least partly surrounded by containment walls upstanding from the support surface; and
the first and second parts of the container having sufficient strength and stiffness to function as tray modules for food preparation and serving.